I like to play with hypotheticals in my down time. It could be what would happen in a class, or writing a project, or a later conversation I’m going to have with a person. They’re easy to come up with and I can think of some crazy hypotheticals when I want to. Going to Africa was no exception. I was going to a place I was unfamiliar with having no experience in Africa with Alang having made the mission trip once before. Since he grew up in Cameroon, I felt better, but that didn’t mean that butterflies went away.
I woke up at 3:00 am the day we left for Toube. My mind was coming up with all types of ideas on what to expect to see in Toube. Would this be when culture shock hits me? Will I feel like I’m starving myself to death? Will I be able to handle some of the sights I see? I didn’t go back to sleep. Everyone else woke up around 5:00 am. The ride to the boat was one of the smoothest rides we had so far. There were actually roads (most of the trip) and they weren’t in terrible condition. Plus, not many cars were out at 6:00 am (understandable). Police/military were patrolling the roads and pulled us over a couple times wondering our reason for traveling. Geh showed his military ID and explained what we were doing as other men shined flashlights into our van. We were cleared to go but it was a little nerve wracking watching men with guns tell us whether or not we could go and wondering what would happen if they told us to exit the vehicle.
When going on a vacation, it makes sense to buy a souvenir to remember the experience. Going to Africa seems like the great time to buy something. Who knows if I will ever be back and given the amazing places we’ve been, bringing something home other than pictures would be awesome. The thing is, I told myself for the longest time I would be happy with just some pictures wanting to save money for emergencies only. I quickly realized after arriving in Cameroon that there was no way I could let the opportunity slide to buy a souvenir. I no longer wanted to go just for myself, but for my family back home too. We went to a Douala market on the back end of our trip and now, I had a quest in mind. And boy was it a journey to fulfill my quest.